Article September 9, 1922 Issue

"Having done all, to stand"

ANNA L. WILLS

"Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand." Pondering these words of Paul, thought reverts to the wonderful example of our revered Leader, Mary Baker Eddy, and what she accomplished through standing firm in the truth. Never since Jesus' day has one had to face the world's hatred as she did. Maligned and misrepresented, she stood firm against popular opinion and material resistance, unshaken and unswerving; and never did one stand more perfectly protected, because she put on "the whole armour of God."

The word of God is the law of Truth, the law of perfection and harmony; and that law cannot fail, because it has the power of God with it enforcing it. The failure, when there is any, lies with us, because when we declare God's word we do not stand firm in our clinging to and obedience of it. In the book of Isaiah we read, "When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him." We need the moral courage which Mrs. Eddy tells us, in "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" (p. 514), "is 'the lion of the tribe of Juda,' the king of the mental realm." Thus equipped we can face a situation squarely, and stand firm when the enemy would come in "like a flood;" for spiritual understanding that knows God to be all and evil to be nothing is the standard of the Lord, to be lifted up against the enemy.

The writer remembers an instance in her own experience of standing firm in the truth which may be helpful to others. One day, during the war, her little daughter had purchased some thrift stamps at school and had placed them in her locker. When ready to go home that evening, she discovered that her stamps were gone. She declared the truth as best she could, but went home in rather a confused state of mind, saying that some one had taken her stamps. The truth was at once declared that God never made man dishonest, or a thief, and the "scientific statement of being" (Science and Health, p. 468) tells us "all is infinite Mind and its infinite manifestation, for God is All-in-all;" therefore nothing can be stolen, lost, or misplaced in divine Mind. Work in Science was continued along these lines; but the next day the evil suggestion again presented itself, because nothing was heard of the stamps at school. Arguments of different sorts, all claiming that there is a dishonest child, presented themselves for twenty-one days; and each day the truth was as persistently declared that honesty is a quality of Mind or God, and that man, the reflection of God, must reflect all the qualities of God; therefore there is no such thing as dishonesty to be manifested anywhere, or by any one.

Send a comment to the editors

We'd love to hear from you!

Easily submit your testimonies, articles, and poems online.

Submit

"Having done all, to stand"

We'd love to hear from you!

Sign up for unlimited access